rechler



Aug. 9, 1955 M. D. RECHLER CHAIR WITH FOLDING LEG REST 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed March 18, 1953 INVENTOR. AM/Pffl/V .0. #56625? BY A TI'ORNEY 1955 M. D, RECHLER 2,714,921

CHAIR WITH FOLDING LEG REST Filed March 18, 19515 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 ORNEY United States Patent CHAIR WITH FOLDING LEG REST Morton D. Rechler, New York, N. Y., assignor to Rexart Metal Industries, Inc., New York, N. Y., a corporation of New York Application March 18, 1953, Serial No. 343,171 1 Claim. (Cl. 155-105) This invention relates to folding chairs, one of the objects being to provide a light weight framework having a folding leg rest and giving the comfort and appearance of a chaise longue.

Another object is to provide means for firmly bracing the leg rest at the front of the seat frame to prevent buckling.

Another object is to provide a chair of the lounging type having a one motion closing action and wherein all of the parts of the leg rest and the chair are solidly braced when the chair is open for use.

Another object is provide an adjustable back rest which folds compactly when the chair is closed.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will appear as the description proceeds, reference being made to the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the chaise longue according to my invention,

Fig. 2 is a side view showing the lounge partly closed,

Fig. 3 illustrates details of the parts associated with folding connections of the leg rest, on line 22 of Fig. 1,

Fig. 4 is a cross section on the line 44 of Fig. 1,

Fig. 5 shows details adjacent the rear leg of the lounge, on line 5-5 of Fig. 1, and

Fig. 6 is a modified form of folding joint for the leg rest.

In the drawings the numeral 10 indicates a chair embedying the invention and including in its structure a seat frame 11, back frame 12, front leg frame 13, rear leg frame 14, leg rest frame 15, leg frame folding support 16, arm rests 17, back adjusting linkages 18, and covering cushion or fabric 19, there being operating connections for closing and opening the chair by interaction of the frames, to be described.

The seat frame 11 may be in the form of a pair of side rails carrying at their forward ends 21 a cross rod 22 which forms a pivotal connection for the rearwardly extending ends 23 of side members 24 of leg rest frame 15.

The front leg frame 13 is connected at its terminal ends 25 through linkages 18 to the front ends of the arm rests 17 while the back ends are pivoted at 26 to the back frame 12. Below its terminal ends 25 the front leg frame 13 is pivoted at 27 to the side rails 20. There is a cross rod 28 at the rear of the chair which functions as a pivotal mounting means for the rearwardly extending ends 28 of side rails 20 and for the terminal ends 29 and 30 of the back frame 12 and rear leg frame 14 respectively.

Operating links 31 are connected at 32 by pivot bolts to terminal ends 25 of the front leg structure, and at 33 by similar pivots to the rear leg frame 14 below rod 28. When the chair is open as in Fig. 1 the extensions 34 of rod 28 rest upon the upper edges 35 of links 31 to give stability to the frames. In the present example the extensions 34 are in the form of machine screws With reduced shanks threaded into the rod 28 and held by punching at 36.

Support 16 is pivoted at 37 by its terminal ends 38 to brackets 39 secured to the side members 24. A connect- 7 frame ends.

ing link 40 at each side of the chair is pivoted at one end by bolt 41 to the leg frame 13 below pivot 27. The other end of the connecting link 40 is pivoted to the side rail or member 24 at 42 as by a suitable bolt. A small mounting plate 43 is carried by link 40 between pivots 41 and 42, being nearer to the latter as seen in. Figs. 1 and 2. A secondary link 44 is pivoted at 45 to plate 43 and at 46 to side portions 47 of support 16, there being preferably two such links, one at each side.

When the chair is in its position of use the extensions 48 of cross rod 22 rest upon the top surface 49 of connecting links 40, giving stability and preventing buckling.

The cushion or other fabric 19 may be supported upon spring suspended slats 50 spanning frames 11, 12 and 15, or the cover may be applied in other desirable ways. A tension spring 51 connected to frames 12 and 14 holds the chair in open position and bends around rod 28 when the chair is closed.

This chair is an improvement on the chair shown in my Patent No. 2,630,162, issued March 3, 1953, the folding action being similar in both cases, but the important difference claimed herein is the improved stability given the structure by the pivot extensions which engage against links 31 and 40 when the chair is being used.

The adjusting linkages 18 shown herein are claimed in my co-pending application Ser. No. 336,081, filed February 10, 1953.

The frame 15 and the folding support 16 are preferably formed from single pieces of tubing bent to U-shape and having their terminal ends flattened and drilled for mounting, although these and the other parts of the chair may be modified Without departing from the invention as defined in the appended claims.

This chair is folded as in the prior chair by moving the seat frame upward toward the back frame. During this action the operating links 31 cause leg frame 13 to move toward the back frame 12, which in turn causes connecting link 40 to swing frame 15 downward about its pivot rod 22, while secondary link 44 swings support frame 16 about pivot 37 to position parallel with the frame 15. Fig. 2 illustrates an intermediate stage of the folding action and from which it is evident that further collapsing of the frames will bring them together to take only small space for carrying or packing. A strap 52 passed through suitable slits in the covering 19 and looped under rod 22 provides a hand hold for operating the seat frame while the other hand grasps the top rail of the back frame. it is to be noted that in the Fig. 1 open position of the chair the rod extensions 34 and 48 rest upon the respective operating links 31 and connecting links 4th, which stabilizes the entire structure of the chair. The extension 34 has a shank 53 passed through drilled or punched openings 54, 55 and 56 of frame ends 30, 28 and 29, and threaded into bore 57 of rod 28, washers 58 being provided between the The extension 48 has a similar shank 59 passed through openings 68 and 61 of frames 23 and 21 and into threaded engagement with bore 62 of rod 22, a washer 63 being provided at the joint. In the modified joint shown in Fig. 6 a rod 22a extends through openings 64, 65 of frames 29 and 24 and through washer 66. The rod is held in place by suitable means such as C-rings 67 in grooves 68. A similar construction may be used at the back of the chair with reference to rod 28. Also, lugs may be used on the frame ends 23 and 341 to engage their respective links 49 and 31, as a further modification. In Fig. 6 the extension 48a engages link 49 in the same way as extension 48 in Fig. 3.

I claim:

A folding chair comprising in combination a seat frame, a front leg frame pivoted between its upper and lower ends to the sides of the seat frame, a rear leg frame, a cross rod forming pivotal means of connection between the seat frame, the rear leg frame and a back frame, operating links pivoted to the rear leg frame below the cross rod and extending forward to pivotal connection with the front leg frame above its pivots to the seat frame, a leg rest frame, a second cross rod providing pivotal means of connection between the leg rest frame and the seat frame, connecting links pivoted at their rear ends to the front leg frame below its pivots to the seat frame and having their forward ends pivoted to the leg rest frame, a folding support pivoted to the leg rest frame adjacent its outer end, secondary links pivotally secured at one of their ends to the folding support and at their other ends between the pivots of said connecting links, and arm rests pivoted at their rear ends to the back frame and having pivotal .means of connection at their forward ends to the upper ends of the front leg frame, said first named cross rod carrying extensions which rest upon said operating links, said second cross rod having extensions which rest upon said connecting links, all three of said links coacting in timed relation to automatically fold and unfold the chair when the seat frame is swung respectively toward the back frame and away from the back frame.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,020,207 Platter Nov. 5, 1935 2,452,405 Vincent Oct. 26, 1948 2,517,004 Little et al Aug. 1, 1950 2,614,612 Wogomon Oct. 21, 1952 2,630,162 Rechler Mar. 3, 1953 2,638,970 Harber May 19, 1953 FOREIGN PATENTS 838,219 France Nov. 28, 1938 

